You know that saying “The clothes make the man”? Well I would argue for a culinary-minded update that goes something like, “The knives make the chef.”
Anyone will tell you that a good set of knives is the cornerstone to a kitchen, and I’m especially convinced of this lately, thanks to a recent cooking experience that was nothing short of other-wordly. I was helping out in a friend’s kitchen recently when she handed me the greatest cooking tool I have ever encountered: the Kyocera ceramic knife.
These genius Japanese knives leave their steel counterparts in the dust, with a ceramic blade that is both longer-lasting and easier to clean. Most importantly, they make for chopping that’s smoother and easier than ever seemed possible, speeding up the cooking process in a huge way and making chopping, normally the territory of the sous-chef, unexpectedly fun.
When it actually comes time to sit down and eat (unfortunately, you will have to stop chopping eventually), I’m also a big fan of Wusthof’s line of steak knives. Everything in this line is meticulously designed, from the stain-resistant serrated blades to the stainless steel handles, both efficient and sleek enough to do justice to your undoubtedly excellent choice of steak. Side bonus: they also allow you to blow your friends’ amateur grilling efforts out of the water. And what’s barbecue season without a little healthy competition?
When it comes to flats for work, it can be hard to upgrade from your sneakers without relying too heavily on the ubiquitous ballet flat trend. For a shoe that feels unique but still says “take me seriously, I’ll eventually be your boss,” there’s no better option than leather loafers — classic, comfortable, and versatile, they’re pretty much the perfect shoe for any occasion that doesn’t require either stilettos or galoshes.
The most reliable source I’ve found yet for quality loafers is Etienne Aigner, a great little line that also has a solid collection of gold and silver jewelry, my longtime weakness. While it’s impossible to go wrong with an understated dark brown, I was beyond excited when I came across this pair in “beach nude,” which is a little more versatile when it comes to summer skirts, dresses, or a good pair of white pants.
But let’s not forget about the jewelry: besides turning out a reliable arsenal of basic hoops, studs, and bracelets, this line features an unexpectedly playful mix of gold and silver on a lot of their pieces. It’s not an easy look to make work, but pieces like this necklace definitely fit the bill, and can add a nice twist to an otherwise subdued work outfit. Gold, meet Silver: it’s time you two got better acquainted.
It’s time to make a confession: I have been known to blatantly steal decorating ideas from my friends. And I don’t even feel that bad about it. Really, people in your social circle can be the best source of inspiration when it comes to home decor, and taking a quick look around other people’s apartments is a lot quicker (and more fun) than flipping through stacks and stacks of magazines.
Most recently, I was inspired by a friend who peppers his apartment with Diptyque candles, a habit he formed after surreptitiously doing away with his roommate’s plug-in air freshener. Candles have always been a great way to add instant ambiance to a space, whether it’s a dinner party or a last-minute, wine-fueled rooftop party, and none fit the bill as well as Diptyque.
The entire range smells fantastic, and it doesn’t take much to give your entire place a fresh scent that lingers without being too overpowering — the Mimosa one is ideal for this time of year. I also love the simple, vaguely Deco black and white design, which fits in instantly with pretty much any design scheme you already have.
And, when you find yourself scrambling, I’ve found these to be a great fallback when it comes time to pick up a last-minute host/hostess, wedding, or birthday gift, with enough variety in scent to suit the taste of just about anyone you’re shopping for — they’ll never realize that you forgot to shop for them sooner.
For those of us still working our way up to a house in the Hamptons or some other beachfront getaway, we have to get a little more creative when it comes to finding ways to bliss out in the middle of a hot, city summer. We also have to get a little creative when it comes to finding workouts that won’t leave us feeling woozy from the heat.
After ignoring the trend for years I’ve recently become a major yoga convert — it’s an amazing way to both tone up and clear your head in the middle of an otherwise frenetic schedule. Given the ancient exercise’s recent upswing in popularity, it can be overwhelming to navigate the wide world of gear that has cropped up along with it, and a new line of celebrity-endorsed yoga pants seems to surface every day. I’ve stopped looking, though, because Gaiam gear is a great go-to for all things yoga, particularly their rubber mats which are simple, adorable, and have great traction.
Maybe equally important, the whole company is committed to fair trade, sustainability, and various social issues around the globe with both their business model and the materials they use for their products. This means that when you pick up a mat or a DVD from Gaiam you’re also supporting a long list of worthwhile causes, and getting double the peace of mind from your yoga.
Shop for Gaiam yoga and pilates equipment.
Summer is to me, the very best time of year, not to mention the season when it’s easiest to pull off a casual, I-just-threw-this-on look. It does, however, pose one major style and beauty problem: heat, humidity, and constant sun exposure aren’t exactly gentle on your hair, and not all of us can pull off the shaved head look quite as well as Natalie Portman.
Staving off frizz and general unruliness is no small task, but in this case a good dry shampoo-flat iron combo will do the trick. Flat-irons can be notoriously damaging if you buy the wrong one, though, so it’s worth investing in a quality ceramic model like this FHI flatiron. I’ve come to swear by – it’ll straighten things out without inflicting any excess damage on your locks.
It works especially well if you prep or even follow up with a good dry shampoo like Frederick Fekkai au naturel to get rid of excess moisture -no one wants to look like they just got back from 6 mile run five minutes after leaving the house. Instead just sprinkle in a little of this — bonus points: it smells great — and you’re good to go. It’s your call whether or not to tell people that you just rolled out of bed with perfect hair.
When it comes to accessorizing for work, the common wisdom says that it’s important to express your personality or, more to the point, to avoid fading into the beige background of your cubicle walls. But with jewelry there can sometimes be a fine line between dressing to stand out and dressing like you’re headed for the club, so if I find a look that works I tend to repeat it to the point of excess. This has been the case with me and my hoop earrings for ages — in either gold or silver they’re versatile and can project totally different styles based on size (these Fossil hoops fit the bill perfectly), but wearing the same thing every day has gotten more than a little old.
Thankfully, I came across tortoise Ralph Lauren style a couple of weeks ago, and have been unabashedly obsessed ever since. While both hoops and tortoise are total staples in the world of accessories, you almost never see the two together, which makes for a really fresh and unexpected twist on a classic. The tortoise is also subtle enough that even if you happen to have a day where you’ve really piled on the jewelry (hey, sometimes that’s what it takes to get up in the morning), there’s zero risk of this look going overboard. Instead, it’ll look like you threw on a great pair of earrings from your grandmother’s collection… even if you only bought them last week.
Sure, summer is the season of going out all the time, braving the sun, and occasionally running yourself ragged. But summer is also the season of days when it’s sometimes way too hot out to do anything but sit in front of a fan sipping something on the rocks and listening to a great record. They’re not exactly the hottest digital gadget on the market, but I’m a big advocate of record players as an investment, a piece of interior design and, well, a calmer way to listen to music. With so many artists now releasing their albums on old school LPs (She & Him, Zooey Deschanel’s collaboration with M. Ward, recently committed their bluesy second album to vinyl), record players have moved beyond their former status as a throwback and are now a necessary part of your entertaining arsenal.
This, of course, raises a key question: do you buy vintage or go for a newer model? Personally, I’ve found that while vintage turntables sound like a great idea (and look really cool) they break just as quickly. But you don’t have to choose between form and function here, because Crosley makes an entire line of spanking new record players that look like they belong in a World War II-era living room but include features like radios and CD players alongside the standard turntable.
I’m a particularly big fan of this model in an oak casing – it looks great as a piece of furniture, and also doesn’t take up much space in a cramped apartment. So go ahead: take a night off, have a couple people over, and soak in some vinyl and maybe a Rob Roy.
We live in the era in which our lives are run by smartphones, and I’m the first to sing the praises of — and immediately download – any app that makes life a little more convenient. When it comes to keeping a schedule, though, there’s something a little terrifying about leaving your plans for the next several months contained within a tiny, easily misplaced piece of equipment. There will always be something much more comforting about planning your life (or even your week) in print, and for this there will never be a better tool than the Moleskine notebook.
There’s a reason literary types have been carrying these in their bags since the days of Ernest Hemingway (how’s that for cred?): well-made with a classic design, I like to think this is a notebook that says, “I may love my iPhone, but I’m still a person of timeless taste, manners, and style.” At the very least it says “I am a person that remembers to show up,” whether it’s for a job interview or just a friend date. From travel guides to blank sketch notebooks their whole range comes in handy, but I’m a particularly big fan of the week-by-week planner, which leaves just the right amount of space for random notes to self, phone numbers, or a quick sketch of the bizarre person sitting across from you on the train.
One rule any transplant to New York learns right off the bat: never, ever wear flip flops outside for a trip longer than shuffling to the corner deli and back. And probably not even then. The list of reasons to avoid flip-flops in the city is long, gross, and best not dwelled upon.
This raises a major question of how to replace this go-to summer footwear, and for this, allow me to introduce you to your new best friend, the Sperry Top-Sider boat shoe. A decades-old preppy staple, boat shoes have made a huge comeback over the past several seasons, and with good reason: possibly the most versatile shoe in existence, not only do these look good on ladies and gents of all ages, they’re comfortable for as much strolling (or sauntering) as you’re capable of managing in the heat. A lot of knockoffs have cropped up with their resurgence in popularity, but don’t be fooled, Sperry always has been and always will be the gold standard when it comes to boat shoes.
For such a simple shoe there’s a huge amount in variation between style with these. So far I’ve stuck with a classic dark brown pair, but I’m also feeling this updated color-blocked pair for a little bit of a twist on the look.
And, in case you want to feel like you’re on a yacht, in Miami, or on a yacht in Miami (and really, who doesn’t?), these white ones couldn’t possibly be better:
Maybe some people enter into the world with a closet full of professional-looking attire. I am not one of those people.
Like so many others, I’m all too familiar with the classic post-college plight of nailing down a job (or at least a job interview), then having no clue what to wear. As far as I can tell, the trick is to avoid looking like you just rolled in from a night of beer pong, but not overdress like a tuxedo at a beach wedding. Until you’re a CEO, hoodies and power suits are to be avoided. And, of course, all this gets even harder when it’s 85 degrees and humid.
During my crash course in the world of dressing like a grown-up, this BB Dakota blazer has become my saving grace.
Seriously, let me count the ways this blazer is amazing: It’s long enough to work with either jeans or a dress, the grey goes with just about everything, and it’s light so I can still wear it in the summer without worrying about heat stroke. But besides the fact that it’s unbelievably flattering, my favorite feature of this is the three-quarter sleeves that scrunch up, a treatment I already inflict on all sweaters and jackets, usually to their detriment. It’s a small detail but makes the blazer great for showcasing bracelets and rings, and also makes it wearable while still a lot more serious than a shapeless cardigan. I’ve done a little more digging and BB Dakota apparently has an entire range of great summer-and-job-appropriate blazers, so I’d call this one item definitely ready to check off the “work clothes” list.
